Symposium gives the skinny on obesity

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The two conventional approaches used to fight obesity just don't work well, said Noreen Willows, an assistant professor of community nutrition at the University of Alberta (U of A).

"Well, it's easy, you just get off the couch and exercise, right? So you just tell your children to stop watching TV, don't play video games and play. It's easy, easy, easy. The other one is just eat better. Don't eat those fries, you know, and there's a nice salad. So why does this approach consistently fail?" she asked during a panel discussion focused on obesity in First Nation communities.

Willows was one of many health care professionals who gathered on Oct. 21 for Obesity Symposium 2004, where Canada's growing obesity epidemic was discussed. The symposium was hosted by the Centre for Health Promotion Studies at the U of A.

Willows said it was important to put things in context, especially for the people who live in rural or reserve settings. The reality is that many First Nation people live at or below the poverty line. Overcrowded houses, lower education levels, lone parent families, inadequate recreational facilities and few opportunities to buy inexpensive healthy foods are facts of life that Willows wants health scientists, dieticians and the like to think about when they are dealing with Aboriginal people.

"It behooves us as health care professionals to understand the environment within which people live before we give a simple prescription for change," she said.

During her research of the Cree children in Mistissini, Que., Willows found that most children preferred poutine to traditional foods and that healthy food choices were simply not being brought to the table.

It's no wonder. In remote areas, such as Fort Chipewyan, Alta., four litres of milk costs $15. Willows reported that people have been opening their own canteens in their homes to make a few dollars and make junk food accessible even late at night.

"How do you combat that when you have a whole generation of people, of young children growing up that no longer desire traditional food?" Noreen Willows observed.

Solomon Awashish, a chronic disease prevention officer for the Cree Board of Health and Justice and James Bay Cree Territory, saw the problem from a different perspective.

"They took away our traditional food- our moose, our bear, our goose-and gave us bologna and click [SPAM]," said Awashish, who explained that the problem began in the 1960s. "[The government] told our people, 'If you stop hunting, and you live in the community year-round, we're going to give you some houses and we're going to give you jobs.' [So they stopped hunting] and now they have a shack." In 33 years, the Eeyouch population went from zero people with diabetes to 1,135, about 10 per cent of the communities.

Opportunity for physical activity is another major barrier. Many facilities are in poor condition, and most people have a sedentary lifestyle. Willows found that the few elite athletes in the Mistissini community were catered to and the tubby kids ignored. Quoting a diabetes health worker, Willows said, "[Overweight children] don't think it's because they don't want to do anything, it's because there's nothing available for them to do."

Kathleen Cardinal, a program co-ordinator for the Aboriginal Diabetes Wellness Program in Edmonton, recounted the things she has seen change over time.

"Hunting today is a little different. I remember my dad used to go for half-day walks hunting, and he'd come back with 20 ducks or something around his belt. [Today] our food sources are scarce and people don't want to go hunting anymore, but if they do, they usually just drive their vehicle, open the window, shoot out the car or truck and then shoot the moose," she said.

Cardinal also blames loss of culture and spirituality for Aboriginal peoples current state of health.

"People are still grieving, going through the processes, and one of the ways they cop is through eating or other unhealthy behaviors," said Cardinal. There's also an element of self-defense in the behavior, said Cardina. In a conversation she had with some women at a barbecue, "they were saying it's better to be bigger so you can defend yourself [from physical violence]."

Awashish ended the session on a positive note, sharing his experience with the Miyupimaatisiitaau 2002, or Winter Wellness Journey, a walk for diabetes awareness. More than 200 Cree snow-shoed or took sled dogs on a 1,400 kilometre walk through the nine Eeyou Istchee communities. Forty-two completed the 63-day journey to promote traditional activity, food and balanced living.